Lord Huron's Stop at the Record Exchange Draws Hundreds

The band's only performance in Boise was calm, intimate and delightful

Lord Huron's in-store performance packed the Record Exchange on April 17.

After playing a show in Seattle on April 16, and before playing a show in Salt Lake City on April 18, the indie folk band Lord Huron made a special stop in Boise on their day off. On the afternoon of Sunday, April 17 the band took to the brand new permanent stage inside the Record Exchange and performed an hour-long set for free.

The store was packed with hundreds of people among the shelves of CDs and vinyl records, quietly swaying to the band's newest tunes off their album Strange Trails. The album is currently the top seller at the record store and sitting at No. 97 on the Billboard Top 200—down from No. 23 following its album release.

"They came to us, which was pretty cool," said Record Exchange Marketing Director Chad Dryden, who arranged the in-store performance. The Record Exchange always tries to have some sort of in-store over Record Store Day weekend, and Lord Huron couldn't have been a better fit.

"That was one of the largest in-store [performances] we've had," Dryden said.

Jessica Murri

Lord Huron's only performance in Boise was at the Record Exchange, before they moved along on their tour.

Lord Huron is the first band to play on the Record Exchange's new permanent stage, which was built during a remodel of the store earlier this month. Dryden said the new setup—complete with rigging for stage lights along the ceiling—allows more people to watch in-store performance and doesn't have to be set up and torn down after every performance, as it was in the past.

The store averages two-to-four in-stores every month, but with the new stage, Dryden is excited to increase that number.

"It's a special treat for our costumers and for fans of bands that look at tour schedules and see Boise got skipped," Dryden said.

Sunday's performance with the new stage area felt intimate, despite how many people filled the store. The band members walked right through the audience to get to the stage, with the smell of incense in the air and the afternoon sunlight filtering in the store.

Lord Huron didn't get paid for the performance, but it was a good opportunity for them to expand their fan base and sell their records, said Dryden.

He added that he's anxious to fill up the spring and summer calendars for the stage. Right now, he's having conversations with the Finnish metal band Apocalyptica, which is made up of three cellists. They play at the Revolution Concert House on Thursday, May 28.